Special mission: Find the Fairies!
by Kushina Mei Uzumaki
Summary: Will Link be able to gather the fairies in time for the festival?


Lon Lon Ranch is simply a wonder to behold. The green fields, open pastures and quiet breezes give off a relaxing ambience. The ranch owners, Talon, would let his mind wander while his daughter, Malon, sings a melody passed down to her from her mother. Her singing could be heard by the weary travelers on their long and tiresome journeys which are very difficult to endure. The animals being raised there aren't for show. Oftentimes, Malon would take notice of the travelers resting a little outside the ranch when she would deliver their trademark product, Lon Lon Milk. Made of fresh ingredients and produce, it provides the body with strength and energy for the day. Let's not forget about our trusty steeds. Most of the time they would be relaxing and enjoying their time or munching on some hay, but in the time of need they would be prepared to assist in delivering milk across the vast and beautiful Land of Hyrule.

But there's more to Hyrule than that.

The Kokiri Forest is truly an amazing sanctuary for the Kokiri children, what with their guardian, the Great Deku Tree looking over them and protecting them from harm. The children have all they need in the forest: a clean, flowing river, ripe fruit trees, shops, training areas, etc. But all of this isn't enough for the children. They want to explore the world and experience it for themselves. But alas, If they leave the forest, the Great Deku Tree cannot protect them anymore. The children cannot live outside the forest, for a fate worse than death shall overcome them...

Aside from that, there are other areas such as Kakariko Village, Zora's Domain, Hyrule Castle, and the Gerudo Valley that are really worth visiting, as well as the temples that accompany them. These are the blessings that young Link thanks the godesses Din, Farore, and Nayru for everyday.  
Returning to the Kokiri Forest, our young hero was being interrupted during his peaceful slumber. Navi's voice was getting louder and louder as he struggled to open his eyes.

"Man, you're a heavy sleeper, Link!"

Link didn't respond to her; he was trying to get his senses intact.

"Hey! Listen!

Link just waved his hand as a gesture to give him a minute. He was still really tired from yesterday's fun-filled day to prepare for the annual cultural festival held in Kokiri forest. It is celebrated incommemoration of the establishment of the Kingdom of Hyrule, when the Hylians, Gorons, Zoras, Gerudos, and Kokiri all signed a peace treaty and promised to live together in harmony. It is always held in the Kokiri Forest since the children cannot leave the forest. Citizens of Hyrule gather there for three days of fun. Today, Link was assigned to go get supplies from Hyrule castle to help set up festivities, which was going to start at midnight that night.

Link swung his feet of his bed and headed out to the river to wash himself up. He grabbed a clean set of his usual green tunic, nightcap, and comfortable pants. Navi followed him and reminded him of the tasks he was assigned for today.

"Okay, so you need to bring five hundred pounds of fish for the Zora's...the premium kind, you know the Zora king loves his fish...oh, and get some milk from the ranch, we need that to make the pastries and sell some for Malon..." She paused. Navi looked around for Link and saw that he was lying against a rock by the river, looking completely relaxed.

Navi, on the other hand, wasn't.

"LINK HERO!" she yelled. She was fuming.

Link jumped in his relaxed position. He looked startled, which Navi was satisfied with.

"What?" he moaned.

"Were you even listening to what I was saying? You have a lot to do tomorrow, and you're just lying around, without a care in the world!"

"Well, why am I the only one who has to do the heavy lifting around here?"

"Because the Kokiri can't leave, and their hands are full! So unless you don't want to disappoint everyone, you'd better get a move on!"

Link groaned in annoyance; it's true that everyone depended on him because he was the chosen hero or whatever, but having that weight on your shoulders is hard to carry all alone, you know? Navi was just a fairy, so all she could do at the moment was be Link's reminder. He did tend to forget a lot, so Navi was there to help him remember his duties.

He got up, though, and trudged towards the Great Fairy's Fountain. He couldn't do all of this in time without help, so maybe the Great Fairy would provide him with some sort of assistance.

"Come on, Navi," Link called over his shoulder. " We're going to get some help."  
Along the way, Navi laid down all of the things he had to get from the different domains: a large supply of Lon Lon Milk, premium fish from the Zora River, paint for the booths that were to be set up, a team of construction workers from Kakariko village, and decorations from Hyrule Castle Town.

Boy, Link thought. This is going to be a long day.

"Oh, Great Fairy! It's me, Link! Are you there?"

No one responded.

"That's weird," commented Navi. "She's usually here."

It was quite strange. The pillars surrounding the fountain remained unscathed, the water ramined as pure as ever, and the walkway was beautiful as it always was. The exotic carvings told the story of the beginning of time. But there was no time for that; the Great Fairy was missing!

"Maybe you should play Zelda's Lullaby," suggested Navi.

"Yeah. Maybe I should."

Link took out the ocarina he received from his best friend Saria as a going away gift. Racking his brain for the notes, he placed his fingers over the corresponding holes in the instrument.

As the notes made their way through the air, Link tries to fight down the worried feeling in his stomach. She has to be here, he chanted to himself. She has to.

But instead of the Great Fairy, a bunch of smaller fairies popped out from the fountain, squealing and shrieking in panic.

"What's going on?" yelled Link over the noise.

"I think the Great Fairy's been hurt!"

"...so you'll help, right? The Great Fairy can't be restored without your help, young hero!"

Link thought for a moment. He had so much on his plate already; how would he get all the supplies on time?

"So let me get this straight," he said. "The Great Fairy was practicing her performance for the festival, she did some magic, and then it blew up in her face and shattered her into all of you. Correct?"

They all nodded in unison.

"And some of you were blown away into Hyrule."

They nodded again.

"And you need me to go search for them and bring them back here."  
More nodding.

"Well, isn't that just fantastic?" Link exclaimed with sarcasm. He groaned inwardly. He just couldn't get a break, could he?

"Take this mask with you!" One of the pink fairies that looked more like bunnies approached him with a mask made to look like the Great Fairy. It even had the same three magenta ponytails she always had.

"What am I supposed to do with this?"

"When there's a fairy nearby, it'll glow and the fairy will come to you! It'll make your quest much easier!"

"Gee, thanks! That saved me a lot of wandering around!"

"Good luck young hero!"

Link and Navi set out towards the forest, which was near the fountain. They assumed if they were blown away, the fairies couldn't be too far. A few minutes later, Link began contemplating whether to give up or continue.

"Ugh, this is impossible!" he yelled out. Falling backwards to the ground, he let out a long and heavy sigh.

"Here's a suggestion," said Navi. "WHY DON'T YOU USE THE DAMN MASK?!"

"Navi!" gasped Link. "You used a swear word!"

She could've killed somebody at that very moment.

"Just put on the mask, will you?"

"Alright, alright! Sheesh!"

So he did as he was told, and in that instant, the mask started heard a familiar squeak and turned around to see a pink bunny floating towards him.

"Finally! Our first fairy!" exclaimed Link. " You're really smart, Navi!"

"No kidding," she muttered to himself in anger.

They kept walking around and one by one, pink bunnies were floating towards them and the masked absorbed them in. There were around fifteen of them in all. By the time they had found all of them, it was sunset.

"Link, hurry and take them all to the fountain! We only have six hours left!"

Link ran as fast as he could to the fountain which cut the trip Time in half. When they arrived all of the fairies shot up out of the mask. The fairies all gathered together and in a beam of light, the Great Fairy appeared, and she laughed. But it was more of a scream than a laugh.

"Whoa, that was very uncomfortable!" she said in her sweet voice. "You try being blown into small fairies!"

"You're very welcome, Great Fairy!" Link said.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Thank you for restoring me! Is there anything I may help you with?"

"Yes, yes you can! Navi!" Link snapped his fingers.

Navi listed everything Link had to do. The Great Fairy gave him some magic and a wand which could lift anything up into the air at will. So they set out and got everything ready in time for the festival, with extra time to spare. Visitors started showing up at ten, so Link greeted some of his friends and laughed with them until it was midnight. The person he was really looking forward to was Zelda Harkinian, the princess of Hyrule and his first crush. When she showed up with her father, the king, Link was the first to greet them (with a gentlemanly bow, of course). As soon as he set his eyes on Zelda her face became brighter than the moon. He took her hand and planted a soft kiss on it.

"My my, Link, you are quite the gentleman," she said, honey dripping from her voice.

"Only the best for you, m'lady," he replied. "Care to join me on this fine night?"

"Why, I couldn't ask for anything more."

So hand in hand they ran towards the noisy and cheerful festival, with Din, Farore, and Nayru smiling down upon them.


End file.
